With growing emphasis on finding ‘green’ and sustainable solutions to our energy-hungry lifestyles, there is one process that is attracting a significant amount of interest around the world – and that’s solar hot water. And in many places, evacuated tube systems are attracting the most amount of interest as word spreads about their efficiency and performance over the traditional flat panels or plate systems.
This increased demand has created opportunities for a whole lot of new suppliers of solar hot water systems coming to the market, and not all have the same approach to quality and customer service. Alternative energy is a ‘must’ if we are to create a sustainable future, but caution is needed when making the switch to ensure that quality is not compromised.
If you’re considering buying an evacuated tube system, you may want to ask potential suppliers about the following issues to ensure that you’re on the right track.
How long have they been in the evacuated tube business ?. Experience does count, particularly as the performance of any solar hot water system will depend on the quality of the actual product as well as the quality of the installation. Ask about the company’s membership with any industry bodies etc.
Ask about the particular brand of evacuated tube system and how long the company has sold this brand for. Cheap imports won’t have been around for a long time and won’t have an established reputation.
Always check the warranty – and do the research as there are some instances of evacuated tubes failing a short while after installation.
Find out whether maintenance and service are included in the upfront cost.
When you’re given a price for the solar hot water system, check what is included in the price…..and what’s excluded !.
The efficiency of the system will depend on the quality of the materials used in construction, so look out for the welding joints, the thickness of the insulation materials, how sturdy the mount is etc.
Check out whether the installers have the appropriate qualifications eg roof plumbing.
Whilst evacuated tube systems can be more expensive than the traditional flat panel systems, they are more efficient especially in cloudy or overcast conditions. If you decide on going the route of evacuated tubes, Perth suppliers, Ureco, recommend that you do your homework thoroughly – check out the internet for blogs and reviews on various systems and make sure your choice of solar hot water system supplier is ….well……a hot one !.